Corruptions and Saviors
by Erika Elencia
Summary: Sapphire Maple's just a new trainer with a weird bad luck streak and a slightly dysfunctional team. But what happens when myths turn to reality and the land begins to die? Add in one incredibly stupid evil team hell-bent on flooding the land to create larger oceans and we've got quite the mess. And it turns out that Sapphire's the one who has to stop it all. Yeah...Hoenn's doomed.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Drip.

Drop.

The tears kept streaming down my face as I sat there in the dark.

I don't think I've ever truly hated my father more than I do now. Not even the day that bastard kicked my older brother, Jade, out of the house. I don't understand how he isn't bitter about the whole thing. But being that he is Jade, that doesn't really surprise me. Jade was sarcastic and rather lazy, but intelligent and good-natured. He was also rather unpredictable. After all, I don't think that anyone saw it coming when Jade Maple, champion of the Johto League, tossed his Champion's Honor Badge to Lance Dragnos without even fighting him, saying, "The championship is nothing but a burden, and a useless one at that. But if you'd like to waste your life away dealing with it, then that's your problem, not mine."

To say that Father was angry to see Jade playing with me in my room several hours after the whole thing was an understatement. So he promptly kicked Jade and Milaque (Jade's Milotic and starter) out of the house, not even bothering to listen to nine year old me as I cried for my older brother.

Jade, being that he is Jade, simply said "So the failure pushes the success away...how ironic," as he walked away. Of course, he still called at least every two days, being that he was still concerned for my health. But what struck me was that Mother didn't even argue about it. At all. It was then that I realized something. Mother cared more for Father than she ever did for either of us, so if Father said Jade was unworthy of being part of our family, then Jade was unworthy. Anything he said goes, so Jade often checked in on me to make sure that they weren't neglecting me for themselves. Although they never did neglect my health, I can understand Jade's concern. He's the only one who really cared at that point, I think. Father was far too obsessed with becoming a gym leader and Mother was only concerned with what Father was concerned with.

Two years later, I met the city's new gym leader (ha! Suck it, Father), thirteen year old Morty Coré. We bonded over a few hours sitting near the pond where Jade had met Miloque. We talked about Pokemon (obviously) and I even got to meet his.

The conversation actually started something like this:

_I sat at the edge of the pond, watching the reflected sunset. _

_A voice cut through my thoughts. "What are you doing here alone?"_

_I turned to the voice and saw a blonde boy clad in purple. _

_"Daydreaming. This is where my brother got his first Pokemon."_

_"A Poliwag?" _

_"No, a Feebas. Turns out some idiot got tired of raising it since it wasn't evolving and released it."_

_The boy's eyes narrowed. "How could they just abandon their own Pokemon like that?!"_

_I shrugged. "I'm glad they did. I had fun helping it evolve with my brother before they left."_

_He nodded. "Fair enough. I'm Morty. What's your name?"_

_I smiled at the thought of having a friend. "Sapphire."_

_He smiled back. "So what kinds of Pokémon do you like, Sapphire?"_

And the conversation kept going from there until my father finally decided to come looking for me. I'm not sure if he was too happy about me befriending the gym leader, but I didn't care. As a child I never got to have many friends, since I kept moving around until we finally settled in Ecruteak. But I had Jade, so I wasn't really lonely until he left on his journey, though he still kept in contact. So having a friend was the best thing ever for me. After all, I never managed to make any friends in Ecruteak either (other than Morty). Maybe it was because I was better with Pokémon than humans? It's not like I never tried, it just never seemed to work.

But that was when I was eleven. And now at age fourteen I was finally allowed to start my journey, but not in Johto. I have to leave my home region because Father finally got his dream job. So after prying me away from my best friend (that took about an hour or so, I was clinging on to him for dear life and it's not like he was making any attempts to get me to let go either), we left for Hoenn and now I'm just sitting in the dark moving truck, desperately missing Morty and Jade.

The truck skidded to a stop and I wiped away my tears. It wouldn't do to let anyone see my moment of weakness. The Vigoroth immediately began to take boxes out of the truck as I stepped out.

It was beautiful, though it could never compare to the eastern style of Ecruteak. Littleroot Town looked far more natural and was surrounded by a lush green. I quickly took out my PokeNav to take pictures; Morty would've wanted to see it so I'll show them to him when we call. Speaking of calling, I'll need to drop by the nearest Pokemon Center to call Jade. He said that he had a surprise for me after all.

Brightening a bit at that, I walked over to the house on the upper right corner of the town. The number 12 was cleanly painted on the door, marking it as my new home. For now at least, seeing as I was planning on leaving on my journey as soon as possible.

I wonder which starter I'll have…I've heard that Professor Birch lives in this town and that he gives away starters though most people choose to find their own starters. I'd be fine with any starter that wasn't a Trubbish or a Stunky, I'm not all that picky when it comes to Pokémon (although I doubt I'd be able to handle the scent of either of the aforementioned Pokémon). I suppose a ghost type would be nice seeing as I was already used to their presence but those can only be found around in Hoenn (apart from Sableye which I find to be rather strange) and I'm not too keen on traveling that far without already having a Pokémon with me.

I smiled to myself as I recalled the conversation Morty and I had last night. We were talking about the ghost types found in Hoenn and ended up fangirling (sorry Morty but there's no way to describe it without somehow damaging your ego) over Banette.

So.

Freaking.

Cute.

I want one.

And it would be the best way to counteract one of Father's normal types since normal types can't even touch ghost types.

I sighed blissfully at the thought of starting with Banette's preevolution, Shuppet.

I briefly considered the idea that I've been spending far too much time with Morty but quickly dismissed it. Ghost types are just cute. End of story. (other than Sableyes, those things just creep me out.)

I wasn't paying much attention to where I was going in my ghost-induced stupor so of course I ended up bumping into someone. Surprise surprise…

"Ouch!" The voice was definitely male, though it wasn't very deep. I looked up at him, taking in his features.

He obviously wasn't any older than me. He had startlingly blue eyes, a shade lighter than my own actually. A white hat covered his light brown hair and he wore a red and black jacket and black jeans. There was a yellow and green backpack slung over his shoulder. He wasn't very lean or muscular, simply thin.

I quickly regained my composure and replied, "Sorry, Banettes just decided to take over my brain."

His eyes widened. "You were possessed?!"

I raised an eyebrow. "No, I was just thinking about how awesome they are. If I were possessed I'd be trying to strangle you or something. Perhaps I'd try to drink your blood?"

He laughed. "You can never be too sure lately, Pokémon have been acting up lately. A lot have even begun attacking people out of the blue, they say the Pokémon are getting anxious 'cause something's stirring."

I frowned. "That's concerning…I'll have to investigate it as I travel."

The brunette immediately brightened at that. "You're going on a journey too?"

I nodded, smiling a bit. "Yeah, I just moved here from Johto. I'll be getting a starter soon, hopefully. I'm Sapphire by the way."

He grinned. "My name's Brendon. If you'd like, I could catch you a Pokémon later, I have to leave in a few minutes to help my dad with some research."

My eyes widened in realization. "Would your dad's name be Professor Birch by any chance?"

He hesitated. "Yeah, why?"

I caught his hesitation and felt a bit sympathetic. I definitely knew what it felt like to be related to someone famous. It's part of the reason why I didn't have many friends. They didn't bother trying to get to know me, they were only concerned with their own status.

"He's a friend of my father's. Father said that he was going to introduce me to your family later so I was just checking."

The doubt in Brendon's eyes vanished when he realized that I wasn't going to bombard him with questions about his dad. "Oh so you're the new gym leader's daughter, right?"

I sighed, expecting this question. "Yup. I'm hoping to defeat him some time in the near future, actually."

He nodded. "Me too. I've heard he's pretty strong."

I shrugged. "My brother's got him beat hands down and I'm pretty sure my best friend wouldn't lose to him either."  
"Really?"  
"Yeah. My brother's currently staying in Sinnoh with Professor Rowan while researching old myths while my best friend's the gym leader back home."

"Really? What type of gym does he have?" Brendon questioned.

"Ghost type. They're the cutest things ever to have existed." I stated as if it was the most obvious thing the world. Which it is. Honestly, I don't get why people are so damn afraid of ghost types.

"Well I wouldn't say that…" he trailed off.

"And why not?" I asked, curious as to why anyone would disagree with such a factual and completely unbiased statement (okay, maybe a little bit biased…).

He checked his PokéNav nervously. "Uh, look at the time! I'd better get going before Dad starts worrying about me…"

I nodded. "Good luck with your research."

He smiled brightly at me. "Thanks Sapphire! See ya!"

I smiled back and waved as he left.

He wasn't too bad. A bit enthusiastic, but he was friend material. I think. I'll have to consult with Jade or Morty on the matter later, or perhaps I'll just find out for myself.

I then walked into my new house as the Vigoroth were leaving.

"Oh hello, Sapphire. How do you like the town so far? Nice, isn't it?" I heard my mother's voice coming down from the kitchen.

"It's not bad. But it isn't home." I said, taking a seat on the sofa.

Mother came into the living room a moment later, grinning. Her brown hair was tied back into a bun and she wore her standard red shirt and blue skirt set.

"Don't worry, it will be soon. Besides, you need some more fresh air. You spent too much time in that stuffy gym anyways." She began to unpack a few stray boxes.

I sighed, not bothering to correct her on her description of the gym. "I suppose so, but do you know when I'll be leaving on my journey?"  
Mother chuckled. "Now, now. We've just arrived and you're already thinking of leaving? But I suppose you'd have to have a chat with Professor Birch about that. Now would you be a dear and go set things up in your room?"

I nodded and went upstairs. I walked past the master bedroom and went into the room at the end of the hall. It was a bit plain, but that was to be expected. I quickly set to work on it, arranging the plushes and unpacking my clothes. I set aside two of my lighter and more comfortable outfits in a traveler's bag, just in case. Once that was done I quickly set my aqua blue clock.

I then looked in the mirror to make sure that I at least looked remotely presentable. It wouldn't do to look like a complete mess on my first day here.

My waist-length dirty blonde hair didn't look overly scruffy and me dark blue bandana was still in place. I also had on a navy blue tank top with a pair of black jean shorts and strappy black sandals. I nodded to myself, finding my appearance to be perfectly presentable.

"SAPPHIRE! COME DOWN HERE, YOUR FATHER'S ON TV!" shouted my mother from the kitchen. I rolled my eyes. Of course he's on TV. He's the new gym leader down at Petalburg, it's to be expected.

Nonetheless, I did go downstairs only to find that I had missed it. Oh well, it doesn't really matter either way.

"You missed it…that's too bad. Oh I know! You should go introduce yourself to the neighbors!" she exclaimed.

I nodded and left, waving a goodbye.

I started walking over to the house next door, but of course _something_ decided to happen.

"HELLLLLLLLLLLLLP!" someone shouted, from Route 101 by the sound of it.

I wasted no time in running out to help them. It occurred to me that I had no Pokémon to actually help with and that I probably should've gone to find Brendon but there really wasn't much time for that right now.

When I arrived the first thing I saw was a Zigzagoon chasing a rather plump man. I inwardly frowned. Weren't Zigzagoon supposed to be friendly creatures?

The man then noticed that I had come into the clearing.

"Quick! I need some help! If you don't have any Pokémon just grab one from my bag before this Zigzagoon kills me!" he shouted. I nodded and sprinted over to the brown messenger bag. Grabbing the first Pokéball that I could get my hands on, I ran back to where the man was being chased by the Zigzagoon. I took a deep breath and called on the Pokémon, praying to Arceus that it would help me.

There was a flash of red light and a light blue Pokémon appeared. "Mudkip! Mud!" It cried out, looking to me for orders. Strange…I would've thought it would have looked to the man for orders instead…

I shook my head, focusing. "Mudkip, use Tackle on that Zigzagoon!"

Mudkip nodded and obeyed without hesitation. The Zigzagoon yelped in surprise but didn't back down. It let out a low growl that didn't seem very intimidating to me but surprisingly enough, Mudkip stepped back, anxiety dancing in his eyes.

"Don't let him scare you Mudkip! Use Tackle once more!" I shouted to him.

Mudkip seemed reassured at the sound of my voice and rammed into the Zigzagoon once more. "Kip! Mudkip!"

The Zigzagoon seemed to be getting discouraged, but was as stubborn as ever. "Zig! Goon!" it cried as it attempted to Headbutt Mudkip.

"Mudkip, dodge!" I ordered. Mudkip quickly got out of the Zigzagoon's way. The Zigzagoon didn't account for this and ended up crashing into a nearby tree. It then ran off, seemingly ashamed. Mudkip ran over to me, grinning. I couldn't help but grin back.

"My, my. It looks like we have some natural talent over here." I turned around to see that the man had calmed down and was walking towards Mudkip and I.

"Umm, thank you sir. Are you alright?" I questioned.

"Oh, I'm perfectly fine. That Zigzagoon just caught me off guard. There have been way too many aggressive Pokémon lately, haven't there?" he said.

"I wouldn't know, I'm not from this region," I informed him.

His eyes lit up. "Oh you're Sapphire, aren't you? My name's Professor Birch. I'm a friend of your father's. That Mudkip was actually supposed to be one of your choices for a starter."

I couldn't believe my luck. "Does that mean that I can keep him then?"

"But of course! I doubt you would've wanted one of the other two after this happened," he said, laughing.

I lifted the Mudkip into my arms. He nuzzled my face softly and I realized just then that he couldn't have been more than a few weeks old. "I think I'll call you Hoshie, after the stars." Mudkip grinned. He liked that name.

Professor Birch smiled. "What a wonderful name for a wonderful Pokémon. Now then you two, are you ready for your journey?"

**A/N Hiya everyone! Welcome to **_**Corruptions and Saviors.**_** This was one of my random ideas and I figured that it might make a decent story. ORAS is my favorite Pokémon games ever and I thought I might be able to expand on it. Jade's sooo gonna be my favorite character to write. He's actually based off of Jade Curtiss from **_**Tales of the Abyss**_**. But he does have a few twists to his character so they aren't actually exactly the same. I'm not really sure about the pairing for this story so maybe you guys could help me out? I'm currently considering Steven or N (yes I'm fully aware that he isn't in ORAS but I love his character and this is my story so there's nothing stopping me from putting him in). So if you guys have any suggestions then please leave a review. Actually just leave a review anyways, I love getting feedback. This is my first ever attempt at writing a battle scene so I need to know if I epic failed or not. Thanks for reading and I'll see you guys later! Oh and I'll be updating you guys on Sapphire's team every chapter so it'll look something like this:**

**Name- Hoshie (pronounced ho-shee-ay)**

**Species- Mudkip**

**Level- 5**

**Gender- Male**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N Hello again my peoples! I have been completely freaking out in the past hour because I thought chapter one wasn't good enough so I decided to calm myself down by typing out chapter two. Enjoy! (Warning, I actually cursed (shocker) once so if you can't deal with that then just skip over the conversation with Morty.)**

_Chapter 2_

_Professor Birch smiled. "What a wonderful name for a wonderful Pokémon. Now then you two, are you ready for your journey?"_

I nodded. "I've been ready for the past few years."

He beamed at me. "That's exactly what I wanted to hear. Now then, why don't you head up to Route 103? My son, Brendan, is over there doing some field research for me. Maybe you two should go ahead and have a battle? It should be a great experience for both of you."

"Of course, Professor. I'm sure Hoshie will love the extra practice. Besides, I don't think I'd mind seeing Brendan again." I said.

"Oh so you've already met? Excellent!" he boomed.

"Yes, I should be going now. Thank you for giving me Hoshie." I said, bowing in respect, as was custom in Johto.

"Alright, well good luck! Don't forget to come by the lab once you're done, okay?" he said.

I nodded. "Promise!"

Professor Birch smiled and waved as he left. I turned to Hoshie, who I had put down a moment ago.

"Alright, so I'm thinking we should get in some training before we face Brendan. It wouldn't do if he was already quite a bit stronger than us, though I doubt the Professor would send us off to fight him if he really was all that much stronger than us." I said thoughtfully.

"Kip! Kip, mudkip." Hoshie said, nodding in agreement.

"Well we don't have much time to waste, now do we Hoshie? Let's see if we can find any Pokémon that are willing to help us train."

We made our way up to Oldale Town, battling several Poocheyenas, Zigzagoons, and Wurmples as we went along. Of course, we only requested battles with Pokémon that were obviously still sane. I don't really think that Hoshie was in the mood for dealing with others like that Zigzagoon that was chasing the Professor around. Hoshie leveled up once. That was probably one of the best parts of the day, actually. When a Pokémon levels up, a short burst of light coming from the Pokémon's body flashes and the Pokémon gains a power boost. The light normally has a different color based on the Pokémon's personality. Hoshie's was a calm, light blue that I thought was rather fitting for him. I've seen plenty of Pokémon level up before at the gym but nothing beats that satisfying feeling when it's your own Pokémon leveling up. Level ups normally occur after battles, when the experience gained from the battles builds up.

Hoshie and I walked into Oldale Town, practically glowing from pride after his level up. We strode up to the Pokémon center where Nurse Joy took the time to register us for the League (Jade's opinion on the Leagues be damned, I'm doing it). I picked out a purple badge case and left Hoshie with her so that she could heal him. I quickly headed over to video call rooms and dialed Jade's number. But of course, as luck would have it, instead of being greeted by my dirty blonde crimson-eyed brother, a lab assistant answered, informing me that Jade was out doing fieldwork and likely wouldn't return for quite some time. I thanked him and ended the call.

Since that didn't work out, I decided to try the next best thing, Morty.

"Hello?" Morty said as his face popped onto the screen.

"Morty! Guess who got herself her starter~!" I exclaimed, grinning.

A smile immediately brightened his features. "Finally! What is it?"

"Only the most amazing Mudkip ever to have graced the world with his existence." I said proudly.

Morty rolled his eyes. "I'm sure he is. Don't they get pretty big when they evolve though?"

I shrugged. "I regret nothing."

He chuckled. "Of course you don't. Although, he'd better be strong enough to battle me by the next time we see each other in person."

I grinned wryly. "But of course, Morty dearest. After all, I'd never miss out on a chance to kick your ass."

"But how do you know that you won't be the one losing?" he questioned, raising an eyebrow.

"I dunno, I guess I'm just a psychic or something," I laughed.

"Or your pride just can't handle the idea of losing," Morty said, smirking mischievously.

"Shut up!" I exclaimed, flushing a bit.

"I'd rather not, this is amusing," he said.

"Ugh well…oh yeah! I wanted to ask you about something," I said, changing the subject successfully (hopefully).

"What is it?" he asked, frowning thoughtfully.

"Do you know anything about what's been going on with Hoenn's Pokémon? They've been really aggressive lately and I forgot to ask the Professor. I figured you might know something since you're affiliated with the League." I said.

"I've heard a bit about it, but I figured it was only rumors. Maybe it was caused by a major environmental change?"

"Maybe…but something just seems off about that explanation." I sighed.

"I'll try to find out a bit about it, but don't get your hopes up. Maybe you should ask Jade?" he said, furrowing his eyebrows.

"I wanted to, but apparently he's out doing fieldwork so I couldn't reach him," I explained.

"Alright, well whatever it is can't be good. Just promise me you'll be careful, okay?" Worry laced his tone.

"I will. Just don't worry too much, alright?" I promised.

"My best friend is going on a journey in a region that neither of us really know anything about and apparently has unusually aggressive Pokémon and apparently I'm not supposed to worry. That makes _so _much sense," he deadpanned.

I grinned. "Did you expect anything less?"  
He sighed. "Of course not."

We kept talking for a good half hour. At some point Hoshie joined us after being fully healed by Nurse Joy. He took an immediate liking to Morty, which was completely adorable. There are two things that never ceased to amaze me about my best friend: the fact that there doesn't seem to be a Pokémon in existence that doesn't completely adore him and the fact that it's impossible to ever get tired of talking to him. But sadly, Hoshie and I had to get going so that we could catch Brendan before he left Route 103. I felt a pang in my chest as we left the Pokémon center. Talking to Morty was going to happen a lot less frequently from here on out.

I shook my head, trying to get those thoughts out of my head.

"Mudkip?' I looked down to see Hoshie looking up at me, concerned. I gave him a reassuring smile.

"Don't worry, I'm just a little homesick, that's all."

Hoshie nodded and we resumed walking. Eventually we caught sight of Brendan and we ran towards him.

"Brendan!" I shouted.

Brendan turned around and his eyes widened when he spotted us.

"Hiya Sapphire! Looks like you finally have a Pokémon!" he commented.

"Yup, this is Hoshie, my new partner in crime." I stated proudly.

He chuckled. "I did consider starting with a Mudkip but that Treeko was practically begging me to bring him home with me."

My eyes widened. "Please don't tell me that's a grass type…" Hoshie grimaced as the implications hit him as well.

Brendan frowned. "Well yeah…is something wrong?"

"Your father wanted us to have a battle…oh well the typing will just make this more of a challenge! I'm ready when you are~" I said, pumped for the battle.

"Well in that case, I think it's just about time for me to show you how to be a real trainer!" he exclaimed, releasing his Treeko from its Pokéball.

I snorted, but had Hoshie step in front of me for the battle regardless. "We'll see about that."

He nodded and shouted his first order. "Treeko, use Quick Attack!"

"Hoshie, intercept with Tackle!" The two Pokémon collided, evenly matched in physical strength. They continued to try to overpower each other before they broke apart a few seconds later, panting heavily.

"Treeko! Use Absorb!" Green light came out of Treeko and moved towards Hoshie. Hoshie dodge most of it, though part of it did manage to graze him and move back to Treeko. Treeko straightened up afterwards while Hoshie whimpered in pain. I took a deep breath, making a mental note to take him to the Pokémon Center later.

"Hoshie, use Tail Whip!" Hoshie wiggled his tail at Treeko cutely, causing Treeko to visibly soften.

"Don't let him distract you, Treeko! Use Quick Attack!"

"Hoshie, use Water Gun on the ground!" Hoshie's did as he was told and Treeko slipped on the muddy ground and groggily got back up.

"Quick, finish him off with Tackle while you have the chance!" Hoshie quickly complied and Treeko fell to the ground again, fainted.

Brendan quickly set to work on healing our Pokémon with some medical supplies that his father gave him since the PokéMart only sold revives to more experienced trainers. He wasn't at all upset that I won, although he was a bit miffed. We then proceeded to go back to Littleroot, chatting amiably. He filled me in on the Pokédex project since it was likely that his father would start me on it as well. Hoshie and Treeko became fast friends in spite of Hoshie's recent victory.

Thinking on it now, I was rather happy to be in Hoenn. After all, if I weren't here then I wouldn't have met Hoshie and Brendan, right?

**A/N I know this was a bit rushed but I really wanted to get this chapter out as soon as possible. I'll introduce the next two members of Sapphire's team next chapter, maybe the third member if I decide to make it a longer chapter. Hopefully it wasn't too bad although I am particularly proud of that battle scene ^~^ Review Please!**

**Sapphire's team**

**Name-Hoshie**

**Species- Mudkip**

**Level- 6**

**Gender- Male**

**Current Moves- Water Gun, Tackle, Growl and Tail Whip**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N- Hiya! Guess who's birthday just passed? ^_^ Well anyways, I've recently been having a dilemma. So you see, I wanted to be faithful to my original team from the actual game which didn't actually include a ghost type however after deciding to give Sapphire an affinity for them I really couldn't just not give her that ghost type. So I've decided to either allow trainers to have more than six Pokémon on them but only allow them to use at most six Pokémon in battle or to simply switch around the team every so often and dump one of Sapphire's Pokémon on Jade. You guys can choose, the ghost type will only be making her appearance somewhere around the fourth gym so you have until then to decide since I really have no idea ^_^' I also apologize if this is a bit crappy, my inspiration's taking a nap but I do really want to update so yeah.**

**So without further ado, here's the next chapter. Reviews make my day! (Well most of the time at least…)**

_Thinking on it now, I was rather happy to be in Hoenn. After all, if I weren't here then I wouldn't have met Hoshie and Brendan, right?_

I figured it would be best if I used our walk back to get a little bit more information about what's going on lately in Hoenn out of Brendan. Thankfully, he was more than happy to answer my questions.

"So what's been going on lately in Hoenn?" I asked.

"Well, I'm sure you've noticed by now but the Pokémon have been acting up lately. Loners are more common these days and battles in the wild tend to get more brutal. A lot of wild Pokémon seem to be turning against the humans they live near as well," he commented, frowning.

Interesting. "And what about Pokémon that already live with humans?"

"That really depends on how friendly they were with their trainers in the first place or their personality. A couple of trainers have actually had to release their Pokémon already. It's kinda disturbing, seeing how such docile Pokémon like Zigzagoon or Wurmple can change in a matter of days…" he trailed off.

"That is rather disturbing…so Pokémon with certain personalities aren't affected?" I questioned, unease settling in me. This isn't normal…at all.

"That's only been observed in Pokémon that live with humans. Pokémon that haven't been with their trainers for long are easily affected unless they have relaxed or cheerful demeanors. The scientists say that something about them is making them more resistant to whatever it is but they're not exactly sure what. It's a lot more random with wild Pokémon so no one knows for sure. They haven't found anything physically wrong with Pokémon either," Brendan explained.

"What about the legendary Pokémon?" I asked.

Brendan froze. "We haven't had reports of them in Hoenn in at least two hundred years other than a few minor sightings of Latias or Latios. Do you think that's the source of all this?" he asked.

I shrugged. "It's possible. Legendaries are responsible for protecting the Pokémon of their region as well as keeping nature in balance."  
He nodded. "Someone should seriously look into that…"

Hoshie nudged my leg. "Mud!"  
I looked down. "What is it?"

Hoshie motioned towards the general direction of Petalburg City. (I did actually take a look at a map of Hoenn a while ago so I do know some things about the general geography of the region.)

I frowned. "Is there something wrong?"

Hoshie opened his mouth to respond but was quickly cut off by a flock of Taillow flying away from the area. They were squawking in fear of something. Something…that I doubt I'd actually want to meet. But I had to do something. The Taillow were obviously terrified. I moved to run over to the area that they were flying away from but a hand on my shoulder stopped me.

Brendan shook his head. "It's too dangerous. We're just two kids with two young Pokémon with them. What could we do? We should just go ahead and report to my dad, I'm sure the Petalburg police could handle it."

I reluctantly nodded. We weren't strong enough, not yet at least. The police could handle it for now; it was their job, wasn't it?  
"…Fine. Let's just get going."

Brendan looked relieved that I wasn't running off to go get myself killed or something, while Hoshie still looked rather concerned about what just happened.

I picked him up consolingly. "We're so gonna check this out later," I muttered. He nodded.

Brendan glanced back at me. "Did you say something, Sapphire?"

"Not at all~"

"Okay then…?"

I giggled at his confused expression.

"Girls…" he muttered.

I laughed and we continued on our way. It wasn't long before we finally got to Littleroot Town.

We wasted no time in getting to the lab. Once we got there we quickly relayed the results of our battle as well as the incident with the Taillow to the professor.

Professor Birch scratched his chin thoughtfully. "I see…I'll have someone check it out later. At the moment everyone at the lab is a bit busy so we'll have to hold onto that for later and let the authorities handle it for now."

I nodded. "I'm a bit worried about that…what if some Pokémon got injured?"

The professor's expression grew serious. "There's a Pokémon Center in the area as well as a police station so I'm sure that the Pokémon already got the help they needed. I'm just glad you two are safe and sound."

Brendan smiled. "Don't worry about it Dad. We know how to keep ourselves safe."

I felt a pang of jealousy at their close relationship but then I remembered that I still had Jade. My older brother was definitely the most important person in my life and I really couldn't have asked for anything more. My mother did actually care about me, though I suppose we could've been a lot closer. While that was partially my own fault for resenting her for what happened with Jade, she never made too many attempts at getting closer too me either. Although, she could be rather protective when she wanted to be, seeing as she did have me start my journey later than the usual requirement of twelve since she thought I wasn't ready to travel on my own yet. Father on the other hand…yeah I'm not even going to start on that subject.

"'Course we do. We're not idiots…or at least I'm not," I teased.

"Hey!" Brendan shouted.

"Kidding, kidding. No need to get so defensive, geez."

"Oh shut up," he said, blushing.

Professor Birch laughed. "Kids these days! So energetic, geez you're making me want to go out and do some field work. But sadly, I'm stuck here for the next week or so. Speaking of work, do you mind doing me a favor, Sapphire?"  
I was intrigued by his offer although I had a feeling about what it was. "What is it?"

"I'd like you to work on the Pokédex project with Brendan. It would be a great opportunity to learn more about Pokémon and I've heard that trainers who've worked on it for other professors end up doing great things. Perhaps it's a bit of a good luck charm?"

I nodded enthusiastically. "I'd love to!"

Professor Birch gave a booming laugh. "That's the spirit! Now both of you, I think it's high time you really started your journeys. But remember to tell your mothers before you leave, got it?"  
Brendan and I nodded happily. The professor handed me a Pokédex and then gave us both ten Pokéballs. We then said our goodbyes and headed out of the lab. Brendan and I both agreed to meet up at the town entrance to start our journeys together in about an hour.

I took a deep breath and walked up to my house, knocking on the door.

I was greeted by my mother's smiling face within moments.

"Mother?"

"Come on in, Sapphire. There's no use in just standing around like this, you know."  
I nodded and went in. I sat down on the couch as mother sat down across from me.

"I'm leaving on my journey today." I said quietly. The gravity of the situation was finally dawning on me. I'm finally going to get to travel with my Pokémon.

Mother nodded. "I should've known. Are you working on the Pokédex project as well?"

"How did you know?" I asked, somewhat surprised.

"You really are just like your brother. Next thing I know, you'll be League Champion and there's going to be a legendary Pokémon stalking you too," she chuckled a bit.

"Lugi doesn't stalk Jade!" I defended.

Somewhere over the rainbow, in Sinnoh, two boys that seemed about nineteen sneezed quite violently. They exchanged an exasperated glance and then the dirty blonde one returned to writing his research in the Fourth Dialect of Ancient Kantonese in a rather successful effort in pissing Professor Carolina off while the dark-blue haired one returned to his book, shaking his head at his partner's antics.

Mother laughed. "I was only kidding dear."

"Sure…"

Mother's expression then turned serious. "Before you leave, I just wanted to tell you that I'm sorry."

I froze. "What…?"  
She sighed and continued. "I know I haven't been the best mother, with all the work I do and the fact that I'm not really the most social person. I know I should've tried harder as well. I was hoping on using our time here in Hoenn as a way to make up for it, but I know that I can't keep you from going on you journey. I just want you to know that in spite of everything, I love you," she stated, her eyes brimming with tears.

I couldn't help myself either. I had wanted that mother-daughter relationship too, deep down. But I never really paid any attention to that want. Tears ran down my cheeks as my mother embraced me, murmuring comforting things into my ear. Hoshie, who had been quiet for the whole exchange, began to his head against my leg.

"…Can we call every time I'm at a Pokémon Center?" I asked when I calmed down.

She smiled lightly. "Whatever you want."

I nodded in her embrace. "Thank you…mom."

Her grin widened and she got up. I immediately missed the comfort of her embrace but didn't protest.

"Well, you can't just leave without properly packing! We need to get some stuff for that cute little Pokémon of yours out too. I'm sure we have some of stuff lying around here…?"

"Um Mom? I have a question."  
"What is it?" she asked.

"Why did you just let Father kick Jade out?"

"I didn't just "let" him kick your brother out. But your father was completely ashamed by your brother's actions. I did argue against it, but in the end my protests were worthless. I'm proud of Jade of course, who wouldn't be? He managed to get the approval and companionship of a legendary as well as the Championship. However, we both know that your father never really approved of Jade's carefree attitude towards the League and this was the last straw I suppose. I know that deep down your father's proud too, but his pride has been compromised."  
I nodded. "I guess that makes sense…"

The smile returned to her face. "Now, back to packing."

In the end we packed a few outfits as well as a formal dress (gothic style of course, I just loved that style) and another pair of combat boots into my bag. It was one of those new bags from Devon Corp that basically acted as a digital storage, using a transmitter to transport my things to and from the suspended animation chamber. It worked kinda like the Pokémon PC boxes actually. I also grabbed a few potions and such to use when my Pokémon were injured. All in all, I think I was well prepared.

After saying goodbye to Mom I met up with Brendan over at the town entrance. We then traveled to Oldale town together, idly chatting on the way.

"Well I think I should stay in this area for a while. I want to observe the Pokémon around here for a little while longer, kay?" Brendan said as we walked into Oldale Town.

I nodded. "Makes sense. I'll go on ahead then, alright?"  
"Yeah sure, we'll probably end up meeting up again soon anyways. Do you have any idea about what Pokémon you're gonna try and catch?" he asked.

"Nope!" I said cheerfully. "I don't know the area well enough yet so I'm just gonna wing it."  
Brendan laughed at my antics. "Should've known. Well good luck, I'll see you soon."

I grinned. "You better be ready for our next battle, you got that?"  
Brendan grinned back. "And you'd better be ready to lose."  
I giggled. "In your dreams, loser."  
And with that we parted ways. I ended up heading towards the road to Petalburg. But you see, I have VERY stupid luck. So of course, something decided to happen to me. Sigh…

So Hoshie and I were walking along the path when something darted out to tackle Hoshie. I ended up falling back in surprise, scraping my elbow in the process. I quickly got up, ignoring the sting from the scrape.

I looked over to see a Poocheyena standing across from Hoshie. It was a bit larger than the Poocheyena I've seen before, but there was something different about him. I had expected it to be one of the unnaturally aggressive Pokémon, but he looked…intelligent. Calm. As if he simply wanted a challenge.

I checked my Pokédex, only to find that the Poocheyena was actually at a much higher level than the ones I've already met. Hoshie and I had already gotten in some more training earlier so he was about three levels ahead of Hoshie.

"Well if it's a challenge you want then it's a challenge you're going to get. Lets do this Hoshie!" I shouted.

The Poocheyena took this as a signal to lunge at Hoshie, a small smirk plastered onto his face. An Ice Fang began to form in his mouth.

"Dodge Hoshie!"

"Mudkip, mud!" Hoshie narrowly avoided the attack and launched his own Water Gun, barely grazing the incredibly quick Pokémon.

The battle continued, with Poocheyena avoiding many of Hoshie's attacks while Hoshie managed to endure Poocheyena's attacks while landing a few hard hits of his own.

Both Pokémon were both panting as they attempted to regain enough energy to continue the fight. I figured it was best to just try and end it here so I stepped in between them.

"Geez, you guys are putting up quite the fight. But I think you need to take a break, you'll have plenty of chances to continue this later, that is if you take me up on my offer, Poocheyena. I don't normally work with dark types but I admire your spirit as well as your capabilities. So, would you like to join us on our journey?" I asked.

The Poocheyena silently assessed me. It felt almost as if those crimson eyes were staring into my soul…

Poocheyena then gave a slight nod.

I grinned widely. "Well then…welcome aboard, Kureno."

Kureno then raised an eyebrow and I shrugged. "My brother got me into the habit of nicknaming Pokémon. Do you like it?"

Kureno nodded his assent. I smiled and took out a Pokéball, which I then used to catch him.

"Okay, go Kureno!" I said, releasing him from the ball. I quickly set to work on healing my Pokémon and setting up camp for the night. I quickly discovered that Kureno hated being in his Pokéball and was rather affectionate once he realized that I was rather dependable after I had healed him. Kureno and Hoshie quickly became friends after the battle so I didn't have to worry about that either. I ended up spending the night curled up with my two Pokémon in my sleeping bag, telling them stories about my old home.

At some point we ended up falling asleep, although I can't really remember when. We hit the road again after having a quick breakfast. We had to battle a few trainers along the way but it was good training so I wasn't complaining. We were nearing the entrance to Petalburg City when we stumbled upon an injured Ralts. I immediately rushed over to aid it the second I saw it.

The Ralts was unconscious and heavily bleeding. I immediately took him into my lap and took out a super potion and some bandages. I quickly treated his wounds, not wanting to risk the chance of any further damage occurring by trying to take him to the Pokémon Center in this state. Once I was sure that he was stable enough, we rushed to the Petalburg Pokémon Center.

"Nurse Joy! This Ralts is in critical condition; I think I managed to stabilize him…"  
Nurse Joy quickly took Ralts from me and set to work. Kureno and I sat (Hoshie was resting in his Pokéball) in the waiting room, fearing for Ralts' health and safety. Nurse Joy came out and informed us that we had rescued him in the nick of time.

I sighed in relief.

"Is he your Ralts?" she asked me.

"No, not yet. Though, I plan on asking if he'd like to come along with me. I just found him in that condition nearby," I stated.

"It must've been one of the more aggressive Pokémon then. This isn't the first scuffle we've had to deal with, hopefully it'll be one of the last," she said as she left the room.

Soon enough Ralts was awake, although he wasn't strong enough to battle for a while yet. I asked him if he'd like to join us when he recovered. He nodded his agreement and soon enough Sentoki had joined us on our adventure as well.

**A/N Hi again! I'm actually pretty proud of this chapter. Oh and no I did not make a typo when I called Lugia "Lugi."** **It's a childhood habit of Sapphire's that I happen to find quite cute. I plan on formally introducing Jade and Lugi in the next chapter, as well as Sapphire's fourth Pokémon.**

**Sapphire's Team**

**Hoshie- Mudkip**

**Level 11**

**Gender- Male**

**Moves- Water Gun, Tackle, Growl, Tail Whip, Mud-slap**

**Kureno- Poocheyena**

**Level 13**

**Gender- Male**

**Moves- Bite, Snarl, Ice Fang, Odor Sleuth **

**Sentoki- Ralts**

**Level 5-**

**Gender- Male**

**Moves- Confusion, Teleport**

**Remember to review please!**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N I guess the last scene of the previous chapter wasn't quite up to my standards. I was trying to get it updated at a certain time but I ended up rushing it too much I guess. Oh well, I'll just have to make it up with this chapter. Enjoy!**

Chapter 4

_Soon enough Ralts was awake, although he wasn't strong enough to battle for a while yet. I asked him if he'd like to join us when he recovered. He nodded his agreement and soon enough Sentoki had joined us on our __adventure as well. _

I walked out of the Pokémon Center with Kureno at my heels and Hoshie on my shoulder. Sentoki was still resting up in his Pokéball. My mind then began to wander back to the events of last night…

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~_Flashback~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~_

_I entered the room where Ralts was recovering quietly. Kureno had grudgingly returned to his Pokéball so Nurse Joy could take care of him. I also figured that it would be best if I handled this alone so I wouldn't overwhelm him. _

"_Hi there Ralts! How are you feeling?" I asked gently. Nurse Joy mentioned that it would be best if I were calmer with him, to keep him from getting excited and injuring himself further. _

_Ralts lifted his head up to gaze at me weakly. But I also caught determination in his stare, as if this was nothing to him. The injuries may have harmed his body, but it had done nothing to break his spirit._

"_I'm fine, thank you for your concern."_

_I jumped at the voice but then relaxed when I remembered that Ralts was a psychic._

"_It's no problem. Could you please tell me exactly what happened to you?" I asked. _

"_I…don't quite remember. All I know is that I suddenly felt dizzy and blacked out. Next thing I know, I'm here being treated for apparently almost bleeding to death. I have a feeling it was one of those Dustox that live a bit further down, I had upset them earlier by taking some of their food," Ralts said._

_I winced sympathetically. "Another case of Pokémon gone nuts?" I asked, twirling my finger in the universal sign for nutjob._

"_Probably. Everyone's been feeling rather off lately, and those of whom felt the worse end up becoming…angry. As if something has been interfering with their ability to stay calm. Not even the more powerful psychics have any idea about what exactly is going on." I noted that Ralts actually sounded a lot more curious than he did concerned. _

"_That does sound worrying…do you have any family to go back to?" I asked._

"_No, I never really knew my family. Why do you ask?" he questioned, puzzled._

_I grinned. "Well in that case, how would you like to join ours? We'd be happy to have you along."_

"_I see…I think I'll have to take you up on that offer. I am indebted to you for saving my life so this should allow me to pay you back," he said, nodding._

"_Now, now. You aren't indebted to us at all. We're just happy to have you aboard. I hope you don't mind if I give you a nickname though," I said cheerfully. _

"_No, I don't mind at all."  
"Well let's see…I think you have quite the spirit, judging by your eyes and the fact that you've managed to get through all this just fine. So how about Sentoki? It means "fighter" in the Third Dialect of Ancient Kantonese."_

"_I've heard that very few people speak any of the dialects of Ancient Kantonese…where did you learn it?" Sentoki asked curiously._

_I shrugged. "My brother and I were both rather curious when we heard of the language so we ended up studying it when we were younger. Each dialect has a different purpose so we just studied the most appealing ones. I know three of the eight dialects while he knows about six, including a lost dialect (the Fourth) which we learned from a friend of ours."_

"_I see. Sentoki isn't a bad name at all, thank you," Ralts said. I could see a small smile begin to form on his lips. _

"_Excellent. I'll pick you up a bit later, alright?"_

"_That's fine. I'll see you then," he said._

_I nodded and left the room, waving a goodbye._

_~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~End Flashback~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~_

"…Anddd I just realized that I forgot to call Jade and Morty earlier. Great…" I sighed.

Kureno shook his head in exasperation and grunted.

"_Kureno says that you'll just have to call them later. There's no use in going back now," _Sentoki translated from his Pokéball.

"Yeah, you're right. Thanks Sentoki," I said.

"_It's no problem. I just can't wait until I become a Gallade so I can just link all of our minds together. All of the translating can get annoying at times."_

Sentoki has basically taken on the role of the translator on our team while Kureno is probably the more sensible one out of the four of us. Hoshie is more of the type to just "go with the flow."

"Yeah, sorry 'bout that. You don't always have to translate, I can make guesses too you know," I stated.

Hoshie laughed. "Kip? Mud!"  
"Lets see…you said, "Your guesses are never really right at all though!" right?" I asked.

"_Eh, close enough,"_ Sentoki commented.

"Mean…"

Kureno and Hoshie both replied to that.

"_Kureno says that you should just deal with it and Hoshie says he loves you anyways."_

We all had a good laugh until we finally reached Petalburg Gym. It was a rather large building that resembled one of the dojos from Ecruteak.

I took a deep breath.

Father was in there.

As well as my first gym battle.

"Guys, I think you should return to your Pokéballs for a while. I'll call you out again in a few minutes or so."  
Kureno gave a bark while Hoshie nodded.

"_Kureno says that you shouldn't hesitate to call on us at all if you have any trouble. I agree. We're here for you."_

I smiled softly. "Thanks. You guys are the best."

I quickly returned my Pokémon and went inside the gym.

"Hello there, Father," I greeted him as calmly as possible.

"Hello, Sapphire. I assume you already have your first Pokémon?" he asked, straight to the point as usual.

I nodded. "I have three."  
"That's more than what I would've expected for someone who started their journey just a day ago. I hope you haven't been catching Pokémon indiscriminately."

I bristled. "I would never do that!"

He nodded. "Good. I supp-"

Father was interrupted by the arrival a short boy who looked to be about eleven or so. He had sickly pale skin and wild green hair.

"Um, excuse me sir? Are you the gym leader here?" the boy asked.

"Yes, I am. Are you here to challenge me?" Father asked.

The boy shook his head. "No, my parents are sending me off to Verdanturf Town to try and improve my health. They said it would be best if I had a Pokémon to keep me company but I don't really know how to catch one…" he said, trailing off. I instantly felt a pang of sadness for the poor boy. It must be hard to have to deal with bad health…

"I see…Sapphire, since you have some experience with catching Pokémon it would likely be best if you were to come with him." Father said, handing the boy a Pokéball. "Use this Pokémon to catch your own. Come right back once you're done."

The boy immediately brightened. "Yes sir! Thank you!"  
I nodded. "Of course. We'll be back soon." Part of me felt a pang of jealousy that my father would agree to give some random kid a Pokémon so easily when he wouldn't do the same for his own daughter, even though it was Mom's decision for me to start my journey late. I quickly drowned out that part of me in favor of introducing myself once we left the gym.

"Hi, my name's Sapphire! What's your name?" I asked.

"I'm Wally…thank you for coming with me," he said nervously.

"It's no problem, really. I would've helped even if my father hadn't asked me to." I said, smiling.

Wally's eyes widened. "You're the gym leader's daughter?!"

I nodded. "Well yeah, but I really couldn't care less about that. By the way, do you have any idea about what Pokémon you'd like to catch?" I quickly changed the subject.

"I was thinking about having a psychic type…I've heard that they can actually speak to their trainers using telepathy."  
"That's true. I'm _pretty _sure that mine is totally sick of translating for me and my Pokémon and it's only been a day."

"_It's slightly annoying at times but I don't actually mind all that much. But in any case, the only psychic types in the area that would be good for beginners such as yourself are Ralts such as myself and Abras. An Abra would likely be too much of a nuisance to attempt to capture due to their excessive use of Teleport," _Sentoki stated. Wally was surprised at first but settled down once he realized that it was my own Ralts speaking.

"Well alrightie then, Sentoki. I'll just have Kureno track down one of the Ralts in the area. Is that alright with you Wally?" I asked thoughtfully.

"Yes, that sounds great, thank you."

"You're welcome. Go, Kureno!"

Kureno materialized from his Pokéball and looked up at me expectantly.

"Mind tracking down a Ralts for me?" I asked.

Kureno nodded and sniffed the air, motioning for us to follow him. We stopped in the area where we found Sentoki.

"Okay, the Ralts should be in that patch of tall grass over there. Just use whatever Pokémon my father gave you to weaken it then catch it with a Pokéball like I showed you earlier. Good luck!" I announced.

Wally smiled and nodded. "Thanks, I won't disappoint you!"

I ruffled his hair fondly. "You better not."  
Wally nodded and went into the grass patch. I decided to take this as an opportunity to have all three of my Pokémon spend time together. I released Hoshie and Sentoki and began brushing Kureno's fur as they chatted. I figured it would be best if they were in top condition at all times, especially since it can be rather messy if a Pokémon's fur got too tangled.

A few minutes later Wally returned, grinning with a Pokéball in his hand. I quickly introduced him to my Pokémon and he introduced me to his new Ralts. After that we made our way back to the gym. Wally returned Father's Pokémon and left with a quick goodbye and promise to meet again. **(A/N Sorry if that seemed a bit rushed but I just didn't have any good ideas for that scene.) **

"Father, I'd like to challenge you for a gym battle." I stated determinedly.

He shook his head. "You aren't ready yet."  
.

.

.

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN I'M NOT READY YET?! YOU'R-"  
"Calm down, Sapphire. I would prefer to have a battle with you on more equal grounds. I would rather be able to judge your progress myself later on than battle you now. Come back when you've obtained at least four other badges," Father stated calmly, as if I hadn't just exploded at him.

I settled down a bit, seeing the logic in his words. But I had wanted to have my first gym battle against him, to prove myself…

"Fine then. But the next time I come here it'll be to defeat you once and for all," I gritted out.

"Good. Do you want to stay the night here at the gym or are you going to go back to traveling?" he asked.

"I'll go back to traveling, thank you for the offer. See ya," I stated stiffly, leaving the gym and calling out Kureno and Hoshie. Sentoki still needed his rest after all, at least until tomorrow.

"_I sense a bit of bad blood here…what's the story?_"

"Not now, Sentoki. Maybe after I cool off a bit, 'kay?" I responded.

"_Whatever you want."_

"Okay so let's head over to Petalburg Woods then and set up camp near the entrance."

"_Hoshie says that we should be cautious, it's near the area the Taillow were flying away from before."_

I nodded. "Duly noted."

After a quick stop at the PokéMart, we headed out of Petalburg City. A few minutes after we left, Kureno scented something in the wind and began to run towards it.

"Wait up Kureno!" I called, running after him.

He did stop eventually, and when he did…I wish he didn't.

I gaped in shock at the sight before me. There was only one word that could possibly describe it.

_Death._

This whole clearing, only yards away from Petalburg Forest…it was dead. There was no other way to describe it.

The grass was a dull yellow and the trees looked as if they had been dead for thousands of years. The flowers had all shriveled up and their dull brown petals littered the ground. There were no Pokémon in the clearing, or at least no living ones.

Tears formed in my eyes at the sight of the one Wurmple that couldn't escape whatever had done this. It simply laid there on the dead earth, without breathing a single breath. Kureno had already begun making a makeshift grave for the Pokémon as I fell to my knees in shock.

What could have caused this?!

What did that Wurmple do to deserve its fate?

Why…?

The tears were flowing down my cheeks and sobs began to wreck through my throat. Hoshie curled up next to me in comfort while Sentoki was too shocked to say anything.

Kureno lifted the Wurmple's body into its grave.

Drip.

Drop.

My tears kept flowing and flowing.

What…what was going on here? In Hoenn?  
I…have to stop whatever's happening. Even nature can be stopped, with the right help. I have to find out what's going on. I can't let anymore Pokémon lose their lives.

I know I'm probably not strong enough…but after seeing this, I don't think I could ever live with myself if I didn't at least try.

Kureno finished burying the Wurmple and placed a stone there as a grave marker.

I came up to the grave and sang a soft lullaby, so that the poor Pokémon could at least have a nice rest, wherever it might be now.

We walked away, heads held high with a silent promise to prevent this from happening again.

We were in the comforting lush woods of Petalburg Forest when Sentoki finally spoke up.

"_What. The. Freaking. Hell. Was that…?"_

"I have no clue," I stated softly.

"_I couldn't sense any life in that clearing. It's like…it just disappeared, leaving everything dead."_

"Mudkip! Mud…" Hoshie trailed off.

"_He says that maybe humans did that. I honestly doubt that humans could do this without an atomic bomb or something," _Sentoki sighed.

"I agree. In any case, I'll just have to discuss this with Jade once we reach Rustboro…speaking of Jade, he's gonna freaking murder me for forgetting to call him AGAIN."  
"_That's your brother, right? Is he knowledgeable on this subject?" _Sentoki asked.

"Yeah. He's the former Champion back in Johto so he should know if something like this has happened before. At the very least his partner, Lugia, should know," I explained.

All of my Pokémon perked up at that.

"_Lugia?!"_

"Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that Lugia chose Jade as his champion. They're quite the duo. I swear, Lugi's such a mother hen," I chuckled, thinking of all the weird things those two have gotten themselves into.

"…_well you learn something new everyday."_

We ended up setting up camp over there and continuing through the forest. I managed to get in some more training for Sentoki and Hoshie while Kureno mainly acted as a guide for us since he didn't need the extra training at the moment, seeing as he was already ahead of his teammates.

"Hey watch where you're going!" I shouted in irritation when a rather short man in a lab coat bumped into me.

"Oh I'm so sorry! I was just looking for a Shroomish. They're just the cutest Pokémon in the world so I just have to have one!" the man said enthusiastically.

"Well someone's obsessed…" I commented. I distinctly heard Sentoki mutter "_hypocrite…"_ from his Pokéball but I must be imagining things.

"I FINALLY FOUND YOU!" A weird guy wearing a kind of punk sailor outfit ran over to us, panting in exhaustion. "Now hand over the Devon Goods or else!"

"No! I need to keep these for my boss, you can't have them!" the lab coat guy shouted.

"_Are you some kind of trouble magnet?"_ Sentoki asked, thoroughly annoyed.

"Probably." I muttered. "Okay, what's with the mugging?"

The weirdo ignored me. "I'll just take them by force! Go, Poocheyena!"

Labcoat Guy panicked. "I don't have any Pokémon with me!"

I sighed and stepped in front of him. "I'll handle this. Battle stance, Kureno!"

Kureno took his place on the battlefield, growling lowly at the obviously weaker Poocheyena.

"Prepare to lose!" the weirdo shouted at me.

"Keep dreaming. Kureno, Ice Fang."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~_One ass-kicking later~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~_

"Damn it Poocheyena! Return!" the weirdo shouted. "This isn't the last you'll see of Team Aqua you brat!"

He then proceeded to run for his life.

Sigh. "What an idiot…"

"Thank you so much! Here take this Great Ball as a reward for saving me!" the man said, handing me a Great Ball then running away before I had a chance to reply.

"Um…you're welcome?"

My Pokémon and I just shrugged and continued on our way to Rustboro City after a few more battles. I immediately ran to the Pokémon Center the moment we got there and checked my Pokémon in to be healed. I then proceeded to call my most likely extremely worried older brother.

After about two rings, a nineteen year-old guy appeared on the screen. His dirty blonde hair fell to his shoulders and his crimson eyes looked dull behind his rimless glasses. There were bags under his eyes and he looked paler than usual (and that was saying something.)

"Jade…? Why the hell do you look like the last time you got any sleep was two weeks ago?!" I shouted.

"Correction- five days. Research really isn't all that easy and I do have a deadline here…"

"Workaholic." I accused.

"Damn straight. But in any case, I do believe I deserve an explanation as to why I haven't heard from in you in the past few days."

"Well…so you see…I think I might've also inherited your ability to get into trouble all the time…" I sweat-dropped.

Jade facepalmed. "Why am I not surprised…what happened?"

I began to recount the events of the past few days, not leaving out a single detail.

"I see…this definitely sounds troubling. It's quite possible that this may be a result of Hoenn being without a proper guardian." Jade's expression was dead serious.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"Lugia and I don't exactly know why, but the two legendary Pokémon that reside in Hoenn haven't been active at all. It's almost as if they've vanished completely. Without the presence of at least one guardian legend, a land begins to die. Each region is supported by the souls of the major deities that reside in it. If they suddenly leave or go inactive, there's nothing there to support the land. The land will at first be able to survive on stored energy that accumulated over centuries, but when that runs out, the land will slowly begin to die," he explained.

My eyes widened. "How can we stop this?!"  
Jade sighed. "We would need to reawaken at least one of the guardians here…but at the moment Sinnoh's dealing with its own crisis so I can't exactly leave at the moment…I suppose Hoenn's safety falls onto you then."

"But I'm just a newbie trainer, I can't-"  
"So was I when I first went up against Team Rocket. You can learn along the way and grow stronger. I can try and help as much as I can, but in the end you'll have to handle it. I learned the hard way that league personnel are useless when it comes to this. Besides, I have faith in you. There's nothing to be afraid of," Jade explained, smiling softly.

"…Promise?"

"Do you really have to ask? Oh and another thing, this Team Aqua you mentioned. I have a strange feeling that you've just discovered Team Rocket Junior…"

I giggled. "Like brother, like sister."

"Too true. Oh and one more thing. I did actually have a starter ready for you…but you just HAD to go and get a starter before calling me, didn't you?"

I immediately brightened up. "It wasn't my fault!"

"Sure, sure. Whatever you say. But in any case, it's best if I give him to you now… LUGIA!"

A boy around Jade's age then appeared on the screen with dark blue hair and a white trench coat. His blood red eyes glared at Jade.

"You didn't have to shout," Lugi complained.

"Oh I know. But seeing you fall off the couch in surprise just never gets old," Jade smirked.

"Bastard…"

"Language, there's a child here," Jade said in a singsong tone.

"Aren't you the one who gave me that whole lecture on the definition of the word "fuck" last year?" I cut in.

"Well I figured you would be using it a lot more often at that age so you may as well know what it meant." Jade shrugged. (**A/N Search up "The Definition of the Word Fuck a la Jade Curtiss" on YouTube. It's priceless)**

"You're impossible," Lugi sighed.

"No of course not. What ever are you talking about?"

I burst out laughing. I love these two. They are highly dysfunctional, but they are the best family I could ever ask for.

Lugi took a pure red Pokéball out of his pocket, ignoring Jade. "We recently rescued this little one from some poacher named Hunter J. We figured that he'd probably do better with you than he would with us seeing as we are a bit too busy to properly raise him. I know you'd probably prefer a ghost type, but you take what you can get, right?"  
I nodded. "Of course, I'd love to have him along. So what exactly is he?"  
Lugi quickly used the Pokéball transport machine to send it over.

"Why don't you find out for yourself?"

I nodded and released the Pokémon. It floated in the air next to me as I gaped.

"_Hello, I assume you are my new master?"_

Holy Arceus…it was a shiny Beldum.

**A/N Soooo how was it?  
I hope you guys enjoyed it, I worked extra hard on this all day. Review please!**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N I'm going to try to as many updates as I can all week since I'm on vacation and I don't actually have anything better to do (well other than randomly dragging my friends over for sushi). Also, I've been having these weird nightmares lately. I'm pretty sure the dream I was having last night was about to turn into another one but then N suddenly showed up and the dream wasn't bad at all from that point on. (Which is weird considering the fact that it had already contained murder by that point.) So at the moment I'm definitely leaning towards pairing him with Sapphire, as I've been discussing with a friend of mine. Enjoy!**

_Holy Arceus…it was a shiny Beldum._

Jade smirked at my reaction. "I take it that you like it?"

I shook my head fondly, grinning. "There are times when I wonder just what the hell did I do in a past life to deserve dealing with you and your weirdo habits. But there are others when I think that I'm the luckiest little sister in the world. I'm _pretty_ sure this is a moment of the latter kind."

"I'm just going to ignore your first comment and say you're welcome," Jade said, fixing his glasses.

Lugi snorted. "There are times when I question whether or not I was sober when I actually chose to come with this idiot."

"Ouch. That was just cold…" Jade sniffed, feigning hurt.

"Well as much as I'd love to continue this conversation, I do believe that I should start getting to know my new Pokémon. Who knows how scarred the poor thing is after dealing with you two for so long…I'm still questioning the sanity of the rest of your Pokémon."

Lugi shrugged. "I'm pretty sure the Arcanine's still sane…I think. The Milotic and Umbreon are too far gone at this point."  
Jade opened his mouth to retort but he was interrupted by a rather loud shout. "JADE MAPLE GET DOWN HERE THIS INSTANT!"

"Oh dear…it looks like the good professor would like to have a chat with me… It seems that we'll have to continue this later, alright?"

"Alright, just one more thing."  
"Hm?"  
"Get some Arceus damn rest. You look like a zombie," I deadpanned.

"Well at least I know I don't need a Halloween costume anymore…" he sighed.

"When did you ever?" Lugi muttered.

Jade elbowed him roughly in the arm (though without any real malice) and hung up after swiftly saying goodbye.

Plastering a warm smile onto my face, I turned to my new Pokémon.

"Hiya! I'm Sapphire, your new trainer. I'm assuming you don't need any therapy despite being stuck with those two for so long?" I asked teasingly.

"_No, therapy is not required at the moment, mistress," _the Pokémon responded.

"Okay first of all, don't call me 'mistress'. I'm your friend, not your master. Second of all, would you like a nickname? My other Pokémon have them as well," I said.

"_I would prefer not to have one, mistress," _Beldum stated.

I groaned. " Am I correct in assuming that you aren't going to stop calling me 'mistress' no matter how many times I tell you not to?"

"_Your assumption is correct."_

"…Why am I not surprised…?"

"_I don't know, I haven't known you for long enough."_

"That was rhetorical," I sighed.

"_Duly noted,"_ he responded.

"_Okay so let me get this straight. So you dropped us off to get healed by Nurse Joy then went to call your older brother and Lugia who then told you that you have to save Hoenn and gave you a shiny Beldum. Did I get that all right?"_ Sentoki asked incredulously. I had just picked up the rest of my Pokémon and filled them in on everything in our rented room at the Center.

"Yup, sounds about right," I confirmed.

"_Do things like this happen often, mistress?"_ Beldum asked curiously.

"Eh not really though I have a feeling that's not going to last. Anyways, allow me to introduce you to your new teammates. This is Hoshie, my starter. He's rather relaxed but he is a great battler. Over here's Kureno, our strongest member as well as our star tracker. And finally, we have Sentoki, your fellow psychic," I said, pointing to each Pokémon as I introduced them. They each gave their various greetings as I noticed something hanging on a necklace around Beldum's neck.

"What's that on your neck, Beldum?" I asked.

"_Metagrossite. It was my mother's although she never got to use it. It will allow me to Mega Evolve when the time comes." _Beldum stated.

I nodded thoughtfully. "I've heard of Mega Evolution…I'm sure it'll be quite useful."

Hoshie settled into my lap. "Mudkip! Mud, mudkip."  
"_He says that Swampert are also capable of Mega Evolution."_ Beldum translated.

"Mudkip evolve into Swampert, right?" I asked. Hoshie nodded in confirmation. "Any other Mega Evolutions I should know about?"

Kureno growled softly as Sentoki shrugged. "_Kureno says that he doesn't have one but I recall hearing that both of my possible evolutions have the ability to Mega Evolve."_

"Well I couldn't care less about whether or not you can mega evolve, Kureno. You're you and that's all that matters," I said firmly. Kureno cuddled up to me in response. "And Sentoki, you want to become a Gallade, right?"

"_Correct. Dresses just aren't my style."_

"Alright, just making sure. Remind me to get a dawn stone from Jade at some point in life. But do you know what's the sad part about all this?"

Four pairs of eyes peered up at me, waiting for me to continue.

"I'm a ghost type trainer…" I trailed off.

.

.

.

All of my Pokémon burst out laughing.

"Oh shut up. And apparently the closest ghost types I'd be able to get to are Sableyes…but those things creep even me out. How the hell do they even see with the jewels they have for eyes?!" I exclaimed.

They only laughed harder. I slumped back on the bed, thoroughly annoyed.

"Moving on…so when exactly are we going to challenge the gym here?" I asked.

"_It's your choice. What type of gym is it anyways?" _Sentoki asked.

"No clue!" I said cheerfully.

"_Why am I not surprised…?"_

"Well I did want to get in some training anyways. Any idea on what level you're at, Beldum?"

"_Level five," _he supplied helpfully.

"Okay so you're a bit behind Sentoki then. Not a problem, we'll just have to make sure you're caught up to at least level eight," I said. We then left the Pokémon Center and went towards Route 116.

After a few hours of training we headed over to the gym once everyone was healed up. Kureno was the only one out of his Pokéball at the moment since Sentoki and Beldum generally preferred travelling in their Pokéballs while Hoshie just felt like resting at the moment. We walked in confidently, fully prepared for whatever lay ahead.

The moment we walked in a rather chubby man came up to us.

"Hello there! You're here for your first badge, right?" he asked.

I nodded swiftly. "By any chance do you know what kind of gym this is?"

''Course I do! It's a rock type gym, through and through."  
I blinked. Okay then, that made things easier. "Do you mind sitting out on this one, Kureno? You're already a bit over-leveled for a one-badge team so it would be a bit easy with your Ice Fang. Besides, Hoshie and Beldum have a type advantage anyways," I said thoughtfully. Kureno nodded at my words. "You don't mind doing the first battle, now do you Beldum? I want to see what you're capable of in a more intense battle."

"_I see no problems with it, mistress."_

"A Beldum? That's not something you see everyday here," the man said curiously.

"A shiny Beldum to be exact," I said.

The man gaped at me and I shrugged. "My brother just got insanely lucky in Sinnoh. It doesn't even surprise me at this point."

The man quickly recovered and said, "Well at least it'll make things a bit more interesting…anyways, good luck! If you manage to win all eight badges, you might just get to become the champion!"

"I already know that, but thank you. Rest assured, I won't lose."

After registering for the gym battle with the receptionist, I wandered into the gym's maze area. There were displays of fossils everywhere as well as huge statues of a Kabutops and a Lileep as well as one of a Dragonite fossil. We ended up having to fight two gym trainers. It turns out that they're both students at the trainer school here in Rustboro and that the school's best student is the gym leader, Roxanne. Beldum and Hoshie didn't have any problems against the gym trainers but I wasn't fooled into thinking that the gym leader would make this an easy fight.

I finally made it to the gym battle platform. Kureno stuck by my side as usual as I tossed Hoshie's Pokéball up and caught it again. While I am rather confident in our skills, I'll admit that I'm a bit nervous as well.

Roxanne was about my age, maybe a year or two older. Her brown hair was tied back into two ponyta-tails by a large pink bow and she wore a school uniform-style dress. Her eyes were a bright red with a tinge of pink.

"Hello. Are you here to challenge me for a gym badge?" she asked.

I nodded.

"Very well then. I've become a gym leader in order to test and improve what I've learned in the trainer's school. I will not be defeated so easily!"  
I smirked. "Wouldn't dream of it. My name is Sapphire and this is my first gym battle. I want to make it memorable as memorable as possible."

"Well that's all up to you. Good luck, I have no doubt that you'll need it," she said, moving to her side of the platform. "Prepare for battle, Geodude!"

"Battle stance, Hoshie!" I called out as Hoshie materialized from his Pokéball.

A referee took his place next to the battlefield. "The gym battle between Leader Roxanne and Challenger Sapphire Maple will now commence! This will be a two on two match with only the challenger being allowed to switch her Pokémon. Begin!"

"Alright Hoshie, use Mud-slap!" Hoshie complied quickly, hitting Geodude head on before he could dodge.

"A water type…so it seems that I'm at a disadvantage then. Geodude, try to get the upper hand with Rock Throw!" Geodude winced but wasted no time in throwing rocks at Hoshie.

"Quick, deflect them with Water Gun!" The jet of water collided with the rocks, slowing them down enough that they fell before hitting Hoshie.

"Interesting tactic as well…Go in for a Tackle attack while you have the chance!" The Geodude rushed towards Hoshie who was about to start running.

"Stay still for a moment, Hoshie!" I called out. Hoshie looked slightly confused but complied. Once the Geodude was sufficiently close I called out my next order.

"Now go in for a close range Water Gun!" Roxanne's eyes widened as the attack hit her Geodude.

"Geodude is unable to battle. Hoshie wins!" the referee called out.

"Geodude, you did well. Now return. Sapphire, you aren't bad at all for a beginner. But now I'm stepping up my game. Go, Nosepass!"

"That's quite the nose…return Hoshie!" I called out.

Roxanne raised an eyebrow. "Wouldn't it have been better to keep the type advantage?"

I laughed. "Oh, I am. Hoshie isn't the only Pokémon I have with an advantage against rock types. Battle stance, Beldum!"

Beldum materialized from his Pokéball. "_I'm ready for battle, mistress."_

Roxanne gaped for a moment before quickly pulling herself together. "Well aren't you full of surprises…but no matter. The one with the type advantage isn't always the one who wins!"

I nodded. "That maybe true, but I have a lot of confidence in my Pokémon. Beldum, start this off by flying up and doing a dive Iron Head!"

Beldum wasted no time in complying, building up momentum as he flew up above Nosepass. He then suddenly dived down, the glow of Iron Head quickly materializing. Nosepass staggered back, having sustained quite a bit of damage from the super-effective attack.

"Nosepass, quickly move out of the way!" Her command came too late as Beldum's attack hit spot on.

"Great job, Beldum, now pull back for a moment."

"Nosepass, use Rock Tomb!" Nosepass quickly readied the attack.

"Beldum, quickly intercept the attack with Zen Headbutt!" I called out. Beldum did as he was told, sustaining some recoil damage but not enough to really faze him.

"Now Nosepass! Use Harden then Rock Throw!" Nosepass complied and managed to hit Beldum with two of the shots.

"Beldum, use Iron head once more!" Beldum quickly charged up the attack and hit Nosepass straight on, knocking it out.

"Nosepass is unable to battle! Beldum is the winner!" the referee announce.

"Return Nosepass, you gave it your best shot. It seems that I still have much to learn…but you've definitely earned this Stone Badge," Roxanne said as she walked towards me.

"Thank you, I appreciate having had the chance to battle you. Return, Beldum."  
She handed me the badge. "It was my pleasure. I noticed that you kept your Poochyena out the whole time but you never used him. Why is that?"

I took the badge. "Kureno has this unreasonable hatred of his Pokéball so its best to just keep him out of there and use him as my personal teddy bear. Cuz he's just too fluffy not to hug all the time," I stated, picking him up to prove my point.

Roxanne giggled. "He is rather cute. In any case, good luck with your journey. I'm sure you'll accomplish great things."  
I grinned. "Thank you. I wont let you down," I said as I left the gym.

I decided to head back to Route 116 to finish the day by letting my Pokémon play for a bit, but of course, something just had to happen, didn't it?

**A/N It's a bit short, but I liked it. Hopefully you guys did too~ Review please!**

**Sapphire's Team**

**Hoshie- Mudkip**

**Level 13**

**Gender- Male**

**Moves- Water Gun, Tackle, Growl, Tail Whip, Mud-slap**

**Kureno- Poochyena**

**Level 15**

**Gender- Male**

**Moves- Bite, Snarl, Ice Fang, Odor Sleuth **

**Sentoki- Ralts**

**Level 11-**

**Gender- Male**

**Moves- Confusion, Teleport, Disarming Voice, Double Team**

**Beldum**

**Level 9-**

**Moves- Iron Head, Zen Headbutt, Hold Back, Iron Defense**


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N I lost a follower… T~T Oh well I guess…**

**Enjoy…I want to make this longer but I've been waiting too long to post a new chapter and I'm not exactly very happy right now. Who would be anyways after what I just found out(not the follower thing, something else)…I'll be fine though. I'm just…a bit upset. That's all. Really. (okay I'm rambling…geez. **

_I decided to head back to Route 116 to finish the day by letting my Pokémon play for a bit, but of course, something just had to happen, didn't it?_

"OUT OF THE WAY! MOVE IT!" a man screamed as he ran towards Route 116. From the looks of it, he was also the one who I battled in the Petalburg Forest. Lab-coat Guy was running after him as well. "Wait! Pleeaaase don't take those parts!" he cried.

"Oh my…not again…" I groaned. Kureno let out an irritated growl behind me.

Lab-coat Guy had stopped near the sign at the entrance to the route, struggling to catch his breath. I ran up to him and asked, "What happened this time?"

"You're that amazing trainer that helped me out in Petalburg Forest! Please, can you help me again? I got robbed by Team Aqua…those parts are extremely important and I can't afford to lose them!" he exclaimed.

"Yeah I'll help. Seriously though, you need a Pokémon to help you out in these situations. It's not like I'll be there every time this happens, you know?" I commented.

"Sorry…please get them back!"

I nodded and began to sprint off. "Kureno, do you think you can track the bastard down?"

Kureno nodded and took the lead. I followed him to a cave, the still in progress Rusturf Tunnel to be exact. I snickered at the man's choice of hiding place. It was a dead end, he wouldn't be able to escape even if he tried. I frowned as I noticed a very worried looking old man standing in front of the entrance.

"What's wrong, sir?" I asked.

"We were just out on our walk…Peeko and I…when this strange thug attacked us and made off with my darling Peeko!"

…He actually stole a Pokémon? It's official. This bastard is going down.

"Don't worry, I'll get Peeko back for you. I was already going after that guy anyways, so it shouldn't be a problem at all." I said.

"Thank you lassie! Good luck, that thug didn't look like that big of a pushover."

I nodded. "I've faced him before. His Poocheyena doesn't have anything on Kureno here. No need to worry!" I smiled as I ran off into the tunnel.

The tunnel itself did look rather pretty, actually. The stone walls had a nice, dark green tint to them and the mist gave it a mysterious effect. I noticed that Whismur and Zubat, which are both Pokémon that are hypersensitive to sound, mainly inhabited it. That meant that I couldn't have Kureno use his Snarl attack. As effective as it was, it could disturb the wild Pokémon and cause an uproar. And I happen to like being able to hear…so lets just avoid that.

"GRRRRR THIS HOSTAGE POKÉMON IS ABSOLUTELY WORTHLESS! AND I CAN'T EVEN ESCAPE BECAUSE THIS BLOODY TUNNEL ISN'T EVEN FINISHED!" the sailor-wannabe shouted. There was a caged Wingull beside him, looking rather terrified to say the least.

I winced and snapped, "Shut up! Gods, are you trying to put all of the Whismur into an uproar?!"  
"I know! I'll just take it all out on you. I wouldn't even be in this mess if you hadn't interrupted me earlier," he exclaimed.

"Well, you're welcome to try, you idiot. Kureno, battle stance please." Kureno quickly took up his position in front of me, snarling.

"Go, Poochyena!" His Poochyena materialized in front of him, noticeably smaller than Kureno.

"Kureno, Ice Fang, on the double!" I ordered quietly, but it was loud enough for him to hear the order. The other Poochyena yowled in pain as the attack hit and I felt a pang of sympathy for him. I highly doubted that the man was a caring trainer at all.

"Bite him while he's close up!" The Poochyena bit Kureno without hesitation. Kureno merely winced and shook him off.

"Ram into him while he's still close," I ordered. Kureno built up the force in his hind legs and tackled the Poochyena, knocking him to the ground.

The Poochyena whined softly to which the man merely scowled. "You can beat him! Use bite again!" The Poochyena complied, but with less strength than before.

"Don't you know anything about typings? Dark type attacks don't exactly work on other dark types all that well. Finish it quickly with another Ice Fang, Kureno," I sighed.

Kureno wasted no time in complying, quickly knocking the other Poochyena out with a few well placed Ice Fangs. The other Poochyena had of course fought back well, but Kureno was already stronger to begin with.

"Argh! The boss said that this was just supposed to be some easy job to steal a few parts from Devon! But nooo of course not! You just had to show up and make it all go to ruin! " he exclaimed, groaning as he recalled his Poochyena. "Here, take 'em if you want them so badly!" he said, tossing the parts onto the floor and running off.

"What a retard…" I sighed. Kureno nodded in agreement and I began to pick the lock on the Wingull's cage. It didn't really take long for me to finish. The old man from earlier turned up just as I finished with it.

The Wingull flew up onto his shoulder, rubbing her head against him contentedly, happy to be back with her master again. I smiled at the scene, gathering up the Devon Goods that had been thrown onto the floor.

"Oh thank goodness you're safe, Peeko! Thank you for getting her back for me, lassie. My name is . If you ever need any help, don't hesitate to ask!" he exclaimed, grinning broadly.

"It's a pleasure to meet you sir. I'm Sapphire and this is Kureno. I'm just glad that Peeko's safe," I replied. Kureno nudged me, motioning towards the entrance.

"It seems your Pokémon there wants you to go somewhere. You shouldn't keep him waiting," remarked.

I nodded. "Yeah I know. See ya again sometime!" I ran over to the entrance with Kureno, quickly making my way back over to the entrance to Rustboro City.

**A/N Yes I know I'm ending it really early but I want to get this out and it's always easier to start a fresh chapter for some reason. So please review? Your reviews really make my day and I kinda need it right now.**


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N Wow…writing really does make me feel a lot better. I just wanted to say happy birthday to my darling Natchan (her penname's Natripper, check her out people. She's amazing)! This chap's dedicated to you. Thanks for always being there for me! Luv ya! 3**

Chapter 7

The trek to Rustboro City was…strangely calming. Perhaps it was the fresh air? The sight of the small Pokémon playing together? Maybe it was just the conversation I was enjoying with Sentoki and Beldum, with Kureno's remarks being translated.

But it also gave me time to really think. There was a lot on my mind quite honestly, though I have been trying to keep my mind off of it for now. What really struck me were my brother's words. Saving…Hoenn? I know Jade managed to save a region from Team Rocket when he was fourteen (five years ago…wow time sure does go quickly, doesn't it?) but to be frank…I don't know if I could manage it myself. I know that it's risky. I'm more than willing to risk anything to succeed. If I can stop the land from dying I will do absolutely anything. But…what if I fail? What if Jade's wrong about me being able to do this? _What if I let them all down…?_

"_Stop putting yourself down, idiot. You're just starting out, hardly enough time to figure out whether or not you're gonna make it or not,_" a sharp voice cut into my thoughts.

"Sentoki…?" I murmured.

"_Nooo it's Mew. Geez, lighten up. For Arceus's sake, you're doing fine so far. Just wait a bit, alright? No one's perfect, you just have to keep at it,"_ Sentoki explained.

"_Besides, mistress, I don't think that pessimism is good for your mental health,_" Beldum interjected.

I gave a weak laugh, muttering, "Not that great for stress levels either…"

Kureno nudged me, giving me a reprimanding look and a threatening growl.

"_Kureno says that if you ever try to put yourself down again you'll probably wake up one day with a frozen ass,_" Sentoki translated with a snicker.

I couldn't help myself. I burst into laughter. "So vicious…" I muttered.

"_That does seem to be a common trait amongst dark types…_" Beldum agreed.

Kureno huffed and went a few paces ahead, obviously annoyed. The psychic types and I snickered at his antics, following him as he walked over to the entrance to the city.

Catching up to Kureno, I noticed that Lab-coat Guy was standing over at the sign, obviously hyperventilating. I raised my hand up in greeting, reaching into my bag to grab the Devon Goods. "Yo!"

The man immediately straightened up, eyes lighting up as he saw me. "Oh my! Did you get the Devon Goods back for me?!"

"Straight to the point, aren't you?" I muttered under my breath. Kureno nodded in agreement but the man didn't seem to have heard me. "Yeah, they're right here," I stated, holding up the parts.

"Excellent! What about the man from before? I saw him running away again a bit earlier."  
I snorted at the mention of the sailor-wannabe. "That coward? He wasn't nearly as much of a problem as he thought he was."

"That's great! Now come with me, I'm sure that my boss would love to meet the girl who managed to recover the Devon Goods!" he exclaimed.

I gaped. He can't mean… "You don't by any chance mean the president of Devon Corp., do you?"

Lab-coat Guy beamed. "That's the one! Now come on, we can't keep him waiting now can we?"

"Um…okay?" I said, unsure if this was really happening. Okay sure my brother's the former Champion of Johto and I still know half of the Elite Four and a few gym leaders there but Devon was huge. The company had a base in every region at this point and they developed loads of important things that everyone had, such as my digital storage bag and the PokéNav. Meeting the president of a company that famous…okay even I didn't see that coming.

"Let's go then!" he said, leading me towards the tallest building in the whole city. It was definitely impressive to say the least. We entered and I couldn't help but be amazed by how cool everything looked. The floor was basically glass over an exhibit of fossils and shells while the walls were a nice calming beige. Important-looking businessmen and workers crowded the floor. Lab-Coat Guy led me to the elevator, hitting the button for the top floor.

We exited the elevator after a pleasant 'ding' sounded. The man turned around and said, "Wait here for a moment. I just need to go ahead and inform the president of your arrival."

I nodded and released Hoshie, picking him up. I figured he wouldn't want to miss out on this, despite not knowing the significance of Devon Corp. "Mudkip! Mud?"

"We're going to meet a pretty important guy today, kay? I figured you wouldn't want to miss out on it so just try to be polite, alright?"

Hoshie nodded enthusiastically. "Mud! Mudkip!"

Kureno let out a nonthreatening growl, indicating the return of Lab-coat Guy.

"The president will see you now!" the man announced cheerfully.

I nodded. "Thank you."

He led me to a room farther down the hallway. I stepped inside, wondering about what the president's going to be like.

"Well hello there! So you're the one who managed to help out my staff not once but twice!" the man gave a booming laugh. He was wearing a purple suit and had spiky grey hair that darkened at the roots. He looked to be somewhere in his late fifties/early sixties and had smile lines adorning his face.

"Yup," I said, popping the 'p'. "My name's Sapphire Maple. I assume you're the president of Devon Corp, ."

"That's right. Maple, eh? No relation to Jade Maple?" he questioned.

I raised an eyebrow. "Yes…he's my older brother. Why do you ask?"

"No reason. He just mentioned that you might be coming by and that I should make sure to take care of you somehow during your journey."

I facepalmed. Hard. "Why am I not surprised…"

"I see you don't like the idea very much," he commented, amused.

"Jade's just overprotective at the strangest moments…" I groaned.

"Don't worry, he's only trying to look out for you. Anyways, I'd like to ask a favor of you, if you don't mind?"

"What is it?" I asked, intrigued.

"I would like for you to deliver a letter to someone named Steven in Dewford for me, if you can. I understand that you're heading there for your badge challenge so it shouldn't be too much of a problem," he explained.

"It isn't," I confirmed. "What does he look like?"

"He's rather tall, has silver hair and grey eyes. Is that enough?" questioned, handing me the letter.

I nodded and took the letter. "Should be. Oh wait! I should probably give you back the parts!" I reached into my bag to pull out the Devon Goods again but interrupted me.

"Actually, could you do me a favor and deliver those to Captain Stern in the Slateport Shipyard? I'm sorry for pushing all of this on you," he apologized.

I waved him off, smiling. "It's no problem, really. But just how am I going to get to Dewford though…?"

"I would recommend talking to about that. He's a renowned sailor that lives just outside of Petalburg Woods, it shouldn't be an issue."

"Oh I know that guy! He said that he owes me a favor for saving his Wingull so yeah."

"Perfect! Then I'll see you when you get back to Rustboro city again."

"See ya!" I called as I left the room and hurried to the elevator. I figured it would be best to rest in the Pokémon Center and make a few calls before we left the city.

"_Not exactly what I expected but eh close enough_," Sentoki commented as I got out of the elevator.

"Not exactly what you expected?" I wondered.

"_What he means is that he expected some kind of stuck up rich guy, mistress,_" Beldum explained and Kureno nodded in agreement.

Hoshie sighed. "Mudkip kip…" he commented, earning a laugh from the rest of my Pokémon.

"What did you say? I can't speak Pokémon you know!" I complained.

"_Oh he was just commenting about the fact that Beldum sounded an awful lot like me just now_," Sentoki translated.

"_I suppose…is that a good thing?_" Beldum mused.

"_Most definitely_/Heck no/Mudkip!/Grr…" we all answered at once.

"_You guys are so mean…by the way, Kureno also said that you're about to walk into a door, Sapphire_," Sentoki informed me.

I paused, narrowly avoiding walking into said door. I opened it and stepped out of the building, rubbing my head sheepishly. "Um…I totally knew that that door was there and I was totally paying attention to where I was going."

My Pokémon then decided to have a nice hearty laugh at my expense.

"Gee thanks guys…" I muttered.

"_You're welcome!_" Beldum chirped.

"I was being sarcastic…"

"So you have four Pokémon now then?"

I had just checked my Pokémon into the Center so I figured it would be best to make a call or two as I waited for my Pokémon to rest up. Sentoki didn't really need any healing but Nurse Joy wanted to give him a completely unnecessary (in his opinion) check up. So I had time to call my mom, which was enjoyable but not particularly eventful. At the moment I'm calling Morty since I forgot to call him at Petalburg.

"Yup. Although seventy-five percent are psychic and dark types…" I trailed off.

"Ah, the mortal enemies of ghost types. Still haven't gotten a Sableye yet?" he teased.

I flushed a light red and hissed, "I thought we agreed never to speak of that moment again!"

Morty feigned pondering the idea of ever making such a promise. "Did we? Oops."  
"Oh just shut up. My traumatic experience with those little devils is hardly the topic of this conversation," I groaned.

"On the contrary, I do believe that it is. It's been what, 3 years now? And you still aren't over it?" he asked incredulously.

"In my defense losing my favorite doll to those evil creatures is hardly easy to forget," I muttered.

Morty chuckled. "You never change, do you Saph?"

"No more than you do!" I replied cheekily.

"True enough. By the way, Shauntal from Unova mentioned that she's going to be sending me a Pokémon soon. Apparently its mother died so someone needs to raise it while it's not exactly fit to take care of itself but she's too busy at the moment. If you'd like, I can send him/her over to you once I manage to get it used to being around humans," Morty offered.

"YES! YES! YES! YES! YES! YES! YE-"

"Okay, okay. I get it. Geez…" Morty interrupted.

I grinned impishly. "You're the best. By the way, I currently have one badge and four Pokémon ready to kick your ass next time I see you. I absolutely can't wait."

"Keep dreaming, Saph. Keep dreaming," he snickered.

"Bastard…" I muttered.

"Damn straight. Anyways, what's been going on in Hoenn exactly? The League over there hasn't really been keeping in contact and fewer reporters and shows are releasing information lately. Mind explaining?" he asked.

I groaned. "It's complicated. Lets just say that the legendaries over there have gone missing so the land's not exactly in too good of a shape. And to make things worse guess who Jade decided to hand over the job of saving Hoenn too?"

Morty winced. "I'm not sure about which is more worrying. The land dying or the fact that apparently you have to save it?"

"Hey!"

"Just kidding. But in all seriousness, isn't it a bit much? I know that the League over there is probably restricting the movements of the Gym Leaders and Elite Four as to not arouse any suspicion but the Champion should be doing something…" Morty frowned thoughtfully.

"Do you even know who the Champion is?" I asked.

"Something that starts with an 's'? Hoenn's never been all that public and flashy about anything except for contests to begin with, they're just at an all time low in communications at the moment. The only regular calls Hoenn's sending out are the ones between professors and those who have friends and family in other regions as well as a few business calls here and there. I only know this much from a Gym Leaders Conference that was held a little while ago to be perfectly honest," he explained.

"Well that's great…so when can I expect the new Pokémon?" I questioned.

"A few weeks, I think. It all depends on the Pokémon," he shrugged.

"Do you even know what Pokémon it is?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.

"…Shauntal may have neglected to mention that particular detail before she hung up on me. But I should be receiving it tomorrow so we'll see."  
"Alright. I have to go get my Pokémon back from Nurse Joy," I noted.

"I have to get back to a few of my duties. I'll call you later then?" Morty sighed.

"Sure. Catch ya later!" I said cheerfully, ending the call.

After getting back my Pokémon, I proceeded to make my last call of the day, Jade. I figured I should tell him that I'll be in Dewford soon in case he needed to reach me and I always enjoyed talking to my big brother anyways.

"Hi Nii-san!" I chirped, using the Ancient Kantonese term for 'big brother'. (**A/N Yes Japanese is referred to as Ancient Kantonese in this fic, though I have created several dialects of the language so Japanese is only the Third Dialect I think. Just an idea I had that I happened to like.**)

"Hello there, Imouto-chan."

Jade definitely looked like he got a bit more sleep at least, but he definitely didn't look any less stressed.

I frowned. "What happened now, Jade?"

He sighed, reflexively fixing his glasses. "Apparently Lugia needs to stay in Johto for whatever reason since Ho-oh's out doing something. And not only that but apparently I have to travel around Sinnoh as well…"

"Why would you need to do that?" I questioned.

"Remember how I mentioned that something was going on in Sinnoh? Well turns out it was more severe than I had originally thought and Cynthia, the Champion over there, has her hands tied trying to find a solution herself so apparently I need to do some investigating myself," he explained. "I don't mind that much, really, but there's also the threat of a group called Team Galactic. It'll be a bit bothersome considering the fact that their so called research into the world's new energy coupled with reports of them attacking several key areas might have something to do with the disturbances."  
I groaned. "Okay so I'm stuck with a bunch of sailor-wannabes called Team Aqua and you're dealing with some idiots with- wait what's their theme?"

"Space-men," Jade supplied.

"That's certainly…unique…?"

"More like sci-fi movie rip offs. I swear their hair looks like they just came out of some military camp then fell into a bucket of bright blue paint. _Every. Single. One. Of. Them._"

I winced. "Ouch. Talk about fashion rejects…"  
"More like complete morons. One of them actually recognized me but still challenged me with an Arceus damn Wurmple," Jade deadpanned.

"…are they okay? Is their IQ any higher than 1?" I asked incredulously.

"Probably not. Considering the fact that half of my Pokémon are fully evolved fire and flying types and I've never actually caught any more Pokémon other than my own six and your Beldum, I'd say he seriously needs a psyche check."

"Understatement…dear Arceus that was just plain stupid…"

"Anyways, how'd you do on your gym battle?" Jade asked, changing the subject.

"I got my first badge AND met the president of Devon Corp.! Speaking of which…why the hell did you tell him to watch out for me?! I can handle myself!" I exclaimed.

"Well I wanted to ask the Hoenn Champion but I haven't exactly been able to reach him lately and the president DOES have connections to the Champion so yeah," Jade explained.

"You wanted to ask the freaking Champion to look out for me," I stated blankly.

"Well he's only about two years older than you and he's a pretty good friend of mine so I figured hey why not. Sure he's a bit too geology obsessed and all but he's not a bad guy. I figured you two would be pretty good friends actually," Jade explained absent mindedly, organizing some notes as he spoke.

I stared at him blankly. "You're acting like you're suddenly my mom."

"No, no. If I was acting like a mother then you'd be far worse off," Jade stated matter-of-factly.

"Of course…" I muttered.

"_Well he's certainly…eccentric,_" Sentoki interrupted with a yawn.

"Oh yeah. Sentoki, meet my brother Jade," I introduced.

"Sentoki?" Jade asked quizzically.

"My Ralts. You can't hear him?" I asked, puzzled.

Jade shot me an amused look. "Of course not. Psychics can only project their voices into the minds of those around them, not people that are halfway across the world. The only exception to that is legendaries in human form, since they can actually speak, though they generally have a larger range to begin with," he explained.

"Oh okay," I nodded.

"_I'm going back to sleep, kay? Naps are just plain amazing…tell your brother everyone said hi, alright?_"

"Sure. Jade, my Pokémon all say hi."

"Hello to them as well. In any case, I should get some sleep right about now, there is a time difference here you know. I'll be staying in the Sandgem Center, so you can reach me there if you need me, alright?"

I nodded. "I'll be in Dewford. Night Nii-san, remember, if you don't get at least twelve hours of sleep tonight, I'm going to freaking murder you~" I said, grinning widely.

Jade scoffed. "As if you could. Goodnight Imouto-chan, sleep tight!" he said, hanging up.

I then headed to my room to get some rest and read a bit as well. Tomorrow was probably going to be a long day…

**A/N I really liked that chapter actually. I had a ton of fun writing it so I hope you guys had fun reading it. Remember to review!**

**Sapphire's Team**

**Hoshie- Mudkip**

**Level 13**

**Gender- Male**

**Moves- Water Gun, Tackle, Growl, Tail Whip, Mud-slap**

**Kureno- Poochyena**

**Level 15**

**Gender- Male**

**Moves- Bite, Snarl, Ice Fang, Odor Sleuth **

**Sentoki- Ralts**

**Level 11-**

**Gender- Male**

**Moves- Confusion, Teleport, Disarming Voice, Double Team**

**Beldum**

**Level 9-**

**Moves- Iron Head, Zen Headbutt, Hold Back, Iron Defense**


End file.
